Nominated to participate in the Eximium, the formal
competition for the
position of the High Priestess of a powerful Ohio coven,
Persephone Isis
Alcmedi wants to decline. Having recently taken in the
young daughter of a
werewolf who she kenneled after she was killed and helping
her to deal with
her death is a monumental task. Of course she also doesn't
want anyone to
know that she's responsible for the previous priestess'
disappearance, that
she picked up some new illegal powers along the way, and
that both of these
facts are connected to vampires. But when Persephone gives
in and accepts
the challenge she realizes that one of the contestants
wants the position
more than anyone else when one by one they start to die.
This sequel to Vicious Circle (with future books in the
works) is a great
paranormal read filled with Wiccan ritual details. Readers
will love the
heroine, a strong vivacious woman with a werewolf lover who
plays in a band
called Lycanthropta and her live-in Nana, a woman with her
own power to
contend with. Secondary characters are not simply
background filler, they're
interesting and likable.
The author writes good dialogue and balances it well with
narrative to move
the story along at a good pace. Although you could probably
read this as a
stand-alone book it would be best to read the first story
in the series. The
first quarter of this story is written to help a new reader
catch up and
understand what's going on; however, some background would
be better
understood if the first book were read. Most of this story
centers around the
Eximium competition, its ritual rules and magic, the women
of the coven and
occasionally other paranormal creatures (vampire, fairies,
etc.). The ending
leaves no doubt that there's a third book. Readers should
enjoy this book and
will want to get to know Persephone a lot better.
Persephone Alcmedi has been persuaded to compete for the
position of High Priestess of the Cleveland, Ohio, coven --
now that the former priestess, Vivian Diamond, has
strangely gone missing. Unfortunately, there are a few
small problems with the idea. Not only does Seph know
rather more about Vivian's disappearance than the other
witches realize, but the epic struggle she's just survived
has left her with some highly unusual powers -- ones that
could be dangerous to reveal. Despite her reluctance, she
agrees to participate, if only to prevent snooty Hunter
Hopewell, an obnoxious but talented witch, from ending up
in the winner's circle. Can Seph hide her secrets --
including her connection to the master vampire-wizard
Menessos -- from the terrifyingly wise judges? Plus,
there's her rock 'n' roll werewolf boyfriend, Johnny, and
some angry fairies to deal with....
Once the competition begins, a finalist turns up dead. It
looks as if one of the contestants is willing to do
anything -- including murder -- to win. Suddenly Seph has
even more on her plate than she thought: from solving a
murder to working out what her new powers really are...and
exactly why they're creating so much havoc in her love life.
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